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Monday, October 31, 2011

Cassio Lowood walks where most people fear to tread. He hunts and kills the dead, as his father did before him, using his father's magical athame. He moves from town to town, following the dead, trying to stop them from killing again. He stays for such a short time he makes no friends and puts down no roots. His mother (a witch) and his ghost-sniffing cat are his only points of contact.

Anna should have been no different, but she's more powerful than any ghost he's come across. In fact she's terrifying. She wears the pretty little dress she was killed in, dripping with blood, and has viciously killed anyone who has tried to step inside her house - except Cas. She is a puzzle, takes on two very different personalities; both victim and murderer and Cas doesn't know what to do. Where does she get her power? Why did she spare him? Will he be able to kill her? Does he want to?

I loved this book. I could not put it down. At times downright scary, this is a tale full of haunting images tinged with sadness. Beautifully written, full of witches and curses, and voodoo (oh my!), this is a story to savor - but with the lights on!

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Here's Antonia's review of The Name of the Star. Heard her book talk this yesterday and decided to push it to the top of my TBR pile and start it as soon as I finish There is No Dog (which is, so far, brilliant)

When Rory Devereaux' parents are relocated from Louisiana to England she is thrilled to attend boarding school in White Chapel, despite the uniform! What she doesn't expect, when she moves to the hunting grounds of Jack the Ripper is that mysterious murders will occur while she is there. Very mysterious murders: caught on CCTV with the victims in plain sight being butchered, but no perpetrator.

Settling into a new school in the midst of the most terrifying murder spree London has seen since Victorian times is not what she anticipated, but when she talks to a strange man, a man only she can see, and then hooks up with the Ghost Police, things get a whole lot weirder. And a whole lot more dangerous.

Creepy, suspenseful, and at times, downright terrifying, this book is a fabulous read for teen and adult ripperologists and mystery lovers.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

If you are looking for different, look no further than Au Revoir Crazy European Chick. It is a book like no other. Think La Femme Nikita meets Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist.

Start with a boy, Perry, who is working on his college applications, and is also in a band. His mom wants him to take Gobi, the geeky foreign exchange student living in his house, to the prom on the same night as his band has their first real paid gig. He thinks his life can't get any worse than this. Cue the maniacal background laughter.

Oh, the evening gets so much worse. It turns out Gobi is really an assassin, and she strong-arms Perry to be her chauffeur and aide - in his father's jaguar, in their prom clothes. Yes, this is a night in Manhattan Perry will remember for a long, long time - if he survives the night that is.

This book was so much fun. It's brimming with action sequences, mobsters, car chases, bear fights, blood, family drama, and a standoff with an overpowering parent. And the chapter openers - college application questions - are a stroke of genius.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

James Dashner, one of my favorite authors, will be at kepler's this Friday October 14th at 7.00 to talk about The Death Cure, the book that finalizes the Maze Runner story. And it is SO good (yes, I've read it, yes, it's good, and yes, review coming soon). You shouldn't miss it. Nor him.

Saturday, October 8, 2011

So excited. I LOVE these authors. Loved the Hush Hush series. Can't wait to read Silence and see how it all ends. And I LOVED Mara Dyer. So remember - October 9th, Sunday (TOMORROW!)3.00 pmBecca Fitzpatrick, Silenceand Michelle Hodkin, the Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

Becca Fitzpatrick is returning to Kepler's with Silence, the final installment of the Hush, Hush trilogy. She is joined by Michelle Hodkin with her debut novel, The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer.

Silence: The noise between Patch and Nora is gone. They've overcome the secrets riddled in Patch's dark past...bridged two irreconcilable worlds...faced heart-wrenching tests of betrayal, loyalty, and trust...and all for a love that will transcend the boundary between heaven and earth. Armed with nothing but their absolute faith in one another, Patch and Nora enter a desperate fight to stop a villain who holds the power to shatter everything they've worked for — and their love — forever.

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer: Mara Dyer doesn't believe life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there. It can. She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her strangely unharmed. There is. She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love. She's wrong.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

The cover to Kristin Cashore’s eagerly awaited third novel is royal blue – fitting since the title character has blue in her name and is the king’s daughter. But, oooh. What’s with those keys: one gold, one silver, one bronze?

“I was thrilled when I saw the keys and that they look a little like weapons,” Cashore told PW in a phone interview. “It’s absolutely the best icon for this book, although I better not say more about that. I love all the covers but this one is my favorite.”

Bitterblue, a companion to Graceling and Fire will be published on May 1, 2012. Can't wait!

Yes, I'm a bit obsessed with these books at the moment (they really are good)so wanted to share this article that I just read in deadline.com.

Just announced: Fox has preemptively bought The Magicians, a drama series adaptation of Lev Grossman’s popular fantasy novel, with a script commitment plus penalty. It will be written by X-Men: First Class and Thor co-writers Ashley Miller & Zack Stentz and produced by Michael London (Milk), Shawn Levy and Michael Adelstein. Based on Grossman’s book, which is described as Harry Potter for grown-ups, the one-hour drama follows a group of 20-somethings in New York who study magic and have access to a magical world. London had optioned the novel, which was published in 2009, while 21 Laps/Adelstein had a deal with Miller and Stentz, who have extensive TV background having worked on such series as Fringe and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.

Will be interesting to see what they do with this. It's a very visual book. But Fox?

Just heard that Lionsgate has obtained worldwide rights to develop, produce, and distribute films based on the "Chaos Walking" trilogy by Patrick Ness. Yay.

"Although these stories are set in a critical time in the future, they speak volumes about what is happening all over the world today, and about the power of young people to challenge the status quo and change the course of our future," said Alli Shearmur, Lionsgate's President of Motion Picture Production and Development, who will be overseeing the production for the studio. "We feel privileged to be bringing these powerful and exquisite books to cinematic life."

Critics have hailed the trilogy as "one of the outstanding literary achievements of the present century," (The Irish Times). It's VERY good. And The Wall Street Journal says "With its dark tone, violence, and readerly fanaticism, the book belongs firmly beside Suzanne Collins's work." And yes, Lionsgate is the studio behind THE HUNGER GAMES movie. Joe Drake, Lionsgate's COO and Motion Picture Group President Joe Drake said, "These are books, much like 'The Hunger Games,' that we feel truly beg to be brought to life on screen."

The Scorpio races bring crowds of people to Thisby every year to see if the riders can stay on their water horses and finish the race. It is a dangerous and wild race and some don't survive. Sean Kendrick has won the race for the last four years and plans to win again - especially as this year there is much more at stake. Puck Connelly hasn't raced before but decides to enter as a last ditch effort to keep her older brother on the island. But will the other riders let a girl ride in this traditionally all male race? Will she ride a water horse or her own horse Dove? She has no idea if it's worth the risk but she knows what she can lose.

This is a very different book for Maggie Stiefvater. Told in alternating voices, she builds quite a full mythology for these water horses, to the point where you almost believe - OK, want to believe - they are real. The island, the cliffs, the horses, the call of the ocean, seep into your pores as you read, and left me all nerves as they race for their futures. It is bloody and dramatic, yet achingly beautiful. Another winner for the wonderful Maggie Stiefvater.